Our form expert has tipped 5/1 and 10/1 winners at Cheltenham this week and he has four selections for day four at the Festival including in the Gold Cup.
The Verdict: Friday March 13
0.5pts e.w. Apolon De Charnie in 13:20 Cheltenham at 40/1 (Ladbrokes, Coral 1/5 1,2,3,4)
1pt win Secret Squirrel in 14:00 Cheltenham at 14/1 (bet365, Unibet)
1pt e.w. Kazansky in 15:20 Cheltenham at 14/1 (General 1/5 1,2,3,4)
1pt win Inothewayurthinkin in 16:00 Cheltenham at 15/2 (General)
Backing The Thinker in the Gold Cup
After three fantastic days at Cheltenham the British trainers have fought back a little compared to recent Festivals and it's now 11-10 Ireland in the Prestbury Cup, but Willie Mullins has had five winners and six seconds, betting without Fact To File, so the needle has hardly moved too much regarding the balance of power.
Talking of Ireland, Gavin Cromwell’s horses are also running well after he saddled three of the first four home in the Cross Country, and as winter turns to spring his staying horses will be of interest going into the Grand National and Punchestown as he bids to finish a frustrating season with a flourish.
Last year’s Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup winner INOTHEWAYURTHINKIN was the poster boy of his deep midwinter problems, JP McManus’ eight-year-old going from Festival hero to unfathomable zero after a 53-length defeat in the John Durkan, a 41-length loss in the Savills Chase and a tired fall at the last when well beaten in the Irish Gold Cup.
After that he was 16/1 to retain his Cheltenham Gold Cup crown, but since then plenty has happened.
First of all there were the reports of a tremendous piece of work at Fairyhouse that saw his odds more than half in price to around 7/1, information that might well have had a bearing on McManus’ decision not to supplement Fact To File for the Gold Cup.
With no Fact To File in the race Willie Mullins’ Gold Cup team began to get dismantled and from a possible seven he was down to one at declaration time, a late setback ruling out two-time winner Galopin Des Champs, meaning Gaelic Warrior is the only one to fly the flag for Closutton.
Suddenly the Gold Cup has a very different feel.
Dan Skelton’s The New Lion and L’Eau du Sud didn’t quite cut it in the Champion Hurdle and Champion Chase and his Grey Dawning looks the sort to fall just short as well.
The King George crew dominate the market but they finished fast off an average gallop on a speed track on Boxing Day and all have something to prove over 3m2f and a bit up the Cheltenham hill.
And Haiti Couleurs needs to prove he has the gears for this with his stamina not in question, as Sean Bowen still looks for a first Cheltenham Festival win with his record now standing at 0/62.
I know the way you’re thinking. How can I back this horse after such a torrid season?
Well, some horses just come alive at this meeting in the spring. I think he’s one of them. Remember he’s two from two over 3m2f and 3m2f and a bit at this fixture thanks to his remarkable win in the Kim Muir the year before his Gold Cup glory.
And here is a race that is throwing up dual winners again, after Al Boum Photo and Galopin Des Champs won it twice each in the last seven years. Last year, INTWUT put in a brilliant performance to beat two-time winner GDC by six lengths and he was 18 lengths ahead of the third. He looked like a horse that could go in again 12 months later.
It’s been a terrible season for him so far, there’s no getting away from it, and he won’t be for everyone, as last year’s Gold Cup might well have left a mark on him. But on the flip side, everything has suddenly fallen into place for him and the first-time cheekpieces could be the final piece of this year’s jigsaw.
His half-brothers Ilikedwayurthinkin and Spades Are Trumps were both winners in cheekpieces, the former frequently. His half-sister Walk Me Home won in first-time cheekpieces. And headgear switches have played a huge part in the championship races this week – Lossiemouth wearing first-time cheekpieces in the Champion Hurdle and Il Etait Temps having the hood removed in the Champion Chase.
If the sheepskin sharpens him up in the early stages and helps him travel, helps him jump, he might just pull another Gold Cup rabbit out of the hat.
And, given how things have turned out, he looks a perfectly fair bet at 15/2.
The Verdict: Back INOTHEWAYURTHINKIN in the 16.00 Cheltenham
Mullins outsider can Triumph again
After Poniros landed last year’s JCB Triumph Hurdle at 100/1 for Willie Mullins, the BHA changed the rules so that you couldn’t win this race with a hurdling debutant again.
But the meeting’s leading trainer has still brought a mixed squad of those with proven form and unknown quantities to the Friday opener, saddling up in nine in total, and with antepost favourite Narciso Has ruled out we could be looking at another boilover.
Stable and ownermate Proactif naturally assumed favouritism after Narciso Has was ruled out, and he looked good when seeing off another stablemate and Triumph hopeful Macho Man at Fairyhouse, but he’s not the form choice and I’m happy to back against him in this.
After watching the video of him winning at Auteuil in France, though, I couldn’t help but take an interest in the runner-up, APOLON DE CHARNIE, who is another one to join the Mullins stable in the colours of Ed Ware, of Jimmy Du Seuil Coral Cup fame.
You can see the video here and the eventual runner-up, the number nine in the white and maroon silks to the left of the screen at the start, runs a quite remarkable race behind Proactif.
While the winner and Triumph favourite gets a smooth run in a prominent position, Apolon De Charnie is keen and green towards the rear and goes from an outside pitch to the inside before running on for second after the last.
It’s no wonder he’s ended up at Mullins’ and in a nightmare race to unravel, with any amount of improvement possible from just about any of them at this stage of their careers, I don’t mind having a small each-way punt on him at 40/1.
The Verdict: Back APOLON DE CHARNIE in the 13.20 Cheltenham
Kazansky to stay all day for Elliott
Mullins has the favourite for the Albert Bartlett as well in Doctor Steinberg, but there has to be a possibility he doesn’t settle over this trip and if he doesn’t he’s unlikely to get home in front after this test.
An average-looking week for Gordon Elliott was made better by Wodhooh on Thursday, while he won the Albert Bartlett two years ago, as well, and his KAZANSKY looks interesting in the race this time around.
He is a very strong stayer, related to Irish National winner Thunder And Roses, and he looks just the type to thrive in Albert Bartlett when the sleeves need rolling up at the end of three miles up the hill.
Thursday night's forecast rain will suit him and he’s been overlooked because he was eight lengths behind Doctor Steinberg in second in the Grade 1 Nathaniel Lacy & Partners Solicitors Novice Hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival.
He was outpaced there over 2m6f, but he could reverse that form in this very different test as he showcased his stamina reserves and battling qualities when winning the Grade 2 Defender Novice Hurdle at Limerick over Christmas.
That Limerick novice hurdle has been a rich source of Albert Bartlett winners over the years, with Weapon’s Amnesty, Martello Tower, Penhill, Vanillier and Stellar Story all winning this race at Cheltenham having graduated from the Limerick race, and Kazansky at 14s looks big to add his name to the bulging list.
The Verdict: Back KAZANSKY in the 15.20 Cheltenham
The Secret’s out in the County
Finally, Hughie Morrison’s SECRET SQUIRREL looks a good price to win the William Hill County Handicap Hurdle.
Morrison has had a handful of handicap runners at the Cheltenham Festival in his career and he’s won with two of them, while Secret Squirrel is from the family of his Champion Hurdle runner-up Marble Arch who ran in the same colours.
It’s no wonder he has lined him up for a crack at Cheltenham, then, and there were plenty of positives to take from his return from 371 days off the track when third to Champion Hurdle fourth Alexei in the Kingwell.
Paul O’Brien handled him with care that day after his chance had gone, but he was only beaten eight lengths and that might’ve teed him up beautifully for this.
Johnny Burke takes over in the saddle here and he’s 12 from 49 at 24% for the yard, while Secret Squirrel has long looked capable of bagging a big handicap hurdle pot as an SP of 100/30 in the 2025 William Hill Hurdle at Newbury suggests.
Prior to that he had beaten Kabral Du Mathan at Windsor and every drop of rain that falls Thursday night will be in his favour.
The Verdict: Back SECRET SQUIRREL in the 14.00 Cheltenham
Preview posted at 16:00 GMT on 12/03/26
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